CHAPTER 14: Communication

Channel Technology
The Architecture of Computer Hardware,
Systems Software & Networking:
An Information Technology Approach
4th Edition, Irv Englander
John Wiley and Sons 2010

PowerPoint slides authored by Wilson Wong, Bentley University

PowerPoint slides for the 3rd edition were co-authored with Lynne Senne,
Bentley College
Communication Channel

Copyright 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 14-2

Communication Channels:
Many Ways to Implement
 Signal: specific data transmitted
 Diagram shows a multi-link channel connecting a
computer and a wireless laptop
 Physically: signal passes through different channel forms
including audio, digital, light, radio
 Converters between separate channel links

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Communication Channel
 Characterized by
 Signaling transmission method
 Bandwidth: amount of data transmitted in a
fixed amount of time
 Direction(s) in which signal can flow
 Noise, attenuation, and distortion
characteristics
 Time delay and time jitter
 Medium used
Copyright 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 14-4
Signaling Transmission Method
Choice depends on medium and signal characteristics
 Analog
 Signal takes on a continuous range of values
 Discrete
 Signal takes on only finite, countable set of values
 Digital
 Binary discrete signal
 Frequently preferred because less susceptible to noise and
interference

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Channel Organization
 Point to point channels
 Simplex: channel passes data in one
direction only
 Half-duplex: transmits data one direction
at a time (walkie-talkie)
 Full-duplex: transmits data in both
directions simultaneously (telephone)
 Multipoint: broadcasts messages to all
connected receivers
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Multiplexing
 Carrying multiple messages over a channel
simultaneously
 TDM (time division multiplexing)
 Example: packet switching on the Internet
 Use: digital channels
 FDM (frequency division multiplexing)
 Example: Cable TV
 Analog channels
 Synchronized switches or filters separate
different data signals at receiving end

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Signaling Technology
 Signal carriers
 Electrical voltage
 Electromagnetic radio wave
 Switched light
 Data represented by changes in the
signal as a function of time

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Communicating between
Digital and Analog
 Ideally conversion should be reversible
 Limitations
 Noise: interference from sources like radio waves, electrical
wires, and bad connections that alter the data
 Attenuation: normal reduction in signal strength during
transmission caused by the transmission medium
 Distortion: alteration in the data signal caused by the
communication channel
 Ability to perfectly represent analog data in digital form
 Consequences
 Error correction required to compensate for transmission
limitations
 Small information loss results from converting analog to
digital

Copyright 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 14-9

Analog Signals
 Wireless networking
 Most telephones
 Satellites
 Microwave communications
 Radio and sound
 Radio waves can be converted to electrical
signals for use with wire media for mixed
digital and analog data
 Example: Cable TV with digital Internet feed

Copyright 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 14-10

Sine Wave (1)
 Common natural occurrence
 Basic unit of analog transmission
 Amplitude: wave height or power
 Period: amount of time to trace one complete
cycle of the wave
 Wavelength : distance spanned by a sine wave in
space
 Frequency: cycles per second, i.e., number of
times sine wave repeated per second
 1 Hertz = 1 cycle/sec
 Unit of bandwidth for analog device
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Sine Wave (2)

f = 1/T f is the frequency of the sine wave and where T is the

period measured in seconds

λ=c/f λ is the wavelength of the sine wave and c is the

speed of light
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Circle and the Sine Wave
 Points on a sine wave frequently
designated in degrees
 v = A sin[Θ] where A is the maximum amplitude
and Θ is the angle in the diagram

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Phase-Shifted Sine Waves
 Difference,
measured in
degrees, from a
reference sine
wave

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Waveform Representation
 All can be represented as the sum of sine
waves of different frequencies, phases, and
amplitudes
 Spectrum: frequencies that make up a signal
 Bandwidth: range of frequencies passed by
the channel with a small amount of
attenuation
 Filtering: controlling the channel bandwidth
to prevent interference from other signals

Copyright 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 14-15

Creating a Square Wave from
Sine Waves

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Signal Frequencies
 Sound waves: approximately 20 Hz to 20 KHz
 Stereo systems: 20-20,000 Hz for high fidelity
 Phones: 0-4000 Hz for voice but limits speed
 Electromagnetic radio waves: 60 Hz to 300 GHz
 AM radio: 550 KHz to 1.6 MHz
 20 KHz bandwidth centered around dial frequency of the station
 FM radio: 88 MHz to 108 MHz
 100 KHz bandwidth per station
 TV: 54 MHz to 700 MHz
 >4.5 MHz bandwidth per channel
 Cell phones, Wi-Fi wireless networks: 800 MHz to 5.2Ghz

Copyright 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 14-17

Signal Frequencies

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Sine Waves as Carriers
 A single pure tone consists of a sine wave
 The orchestral note middle A is a 440-Hz sine
wave
 To represent the signal modulate one of the
three characteristics – amplitude, frequency,
phase
 Example: AM or amplitude modulated radio station
at
1100 KHz modulates amplitude of the 1100 KHz
sine wave carrier
 Demodulator or detector restores original
waveform
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Amplitude Modulations

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Modulating Digital Signals
 Two possible values: 0 and 1
 3 techniques
 ASK: amplitude shift keying
 Represents data by holding the frequency constant while
varying the amplitude
 FSK: frequency shift keying
 Represents data by holding the amplitude constant while
varying the frequency
 PSK: phase shift keying
 Represents data by an instantaneous shift in the phase
or a switching between two signals of different phases

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Modulating Digital Signals

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Frequency Division Multiplexing

Optical form of frequency division multiplexing (FDM) is known as

wavelength division multiplexing (WDM)
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Attenuation
 Function of the nature of the transmission
medium and the physical length of the
channel
 More difficult to separate the signal from
noise at higher transmission speeds
 Signal-to-noise ratio:
 Strength of the signal in relation to power of the noise
 Measure at the receiving end
 Amplifiers: restore original strength of the
signal (but also amplifies noise)

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Effects of Attenuation
 Channel fading and phase shifts vary with
the frequency of the signal
 Example: If the signal consists of sine waves of
frequencies f1 and f2 from different parts of the
spectrum, the output of the channel will be
distorted

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Synchronizing Digital Signals
 Synchronizing digital signals difficult
 Asynchronous transmission
 Clear start and stop signals
 Small number of bits, usually one byte
 Use: low-speed modems, Ethernet frames
 Synchronous transmission
 Continuous digital signal
 Use: high-speed modems and point-to-
point methods

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Reception Errors
 Timing mismatch between sending and
receiving computers
 Inability to distinguish groups of 1’s or 0’s

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Block and Manchester Encoding
Block Encoding Manchester Encoding

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A-to-D Conversion
 Digital signals used to represent analog
waveforms
 Examples:
 CDs, DVDs
 Direct satellite TV,
 VOIP
 Telephone voice mail
 Streaming video
 A-to-D Pulse Code Modulation
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A-to-D: Pulse Code Modulation
1. Analog waveform sampled at regular time
intervals
 Maximum amplitude divided into intervals
 Example: 256 levels requires 8 bits/sample

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A-to-D: Pulse Code Modulation
2. Sample values converted into
corresponding number value
 Information lost in conversion

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A-to-D: Pulse Code Modulation
3. Number reduced to binary equivalent

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Digital Signal Quality
 Subject to noise, attenuation, distortion like analog
 Signal quality less affected because only necessary
to distinguish 2 levels
 Repeaters
 Recreate signals at intervals
 Use: transmit signals over long distances
 Error correction techniques available

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Time Division Multiplexing
 TDM - multiple signals share channel

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Bandwidth
 Digital signals: sum of sine waves of
different frequencies
 Higher frequencies: higher data rates
 Channel with wider bandwidth has
higher data rates
 Data rates usually measured in bits per
second

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Modems
 Modem (modulator/demodulator)
 Convert digital signals to analog and back
 Use: home to service provider via phone line or
cable
 Speed: baud rate or bits per second (bps)

DSL

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Transmission Media
 Means used to carry signal
 Characterized by
 Physical properties Bandwidth
 Signaling method(s) Sensitivity to noise
 Guided media: confine signal physically to
some kind of cable
 Unguided media: broadcast openly
 Signal-to-noise ratio
 Higher ratio for given bandwidth increases data
capacity of the channel

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Electrical Media
 Require complete circuit
 2 wires: one to carry the signal, second as
a return to complete the circuit
 Wired media or just wire
 Inexpensive and easy to use
 Signals carried as changing electrical
voltage or current

Copyright 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 14-38

Types of Cable: Copper
 Coaxial cable
 Wire surrounded by insulation
 Copper shield around insulation
 Acts as signal return
 Shields from external noise
 High bandwidth: 100 Mbps
 Example: analog cable TV with FDM for dozens of
channels at 6 MHz
 Twisted pair
 Most local area networks; phone lines in buildings
 More susceptible to noise than coaxial cable
 Used for shorter distances and slower signals

Copyright 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 14-39

Types of Cable: Fiber Optic
 Fiber optic cable
 Consists of glass fiber thinner than human hair
 Uses light to carry signals
 Laser or light-emitting diode produces signal
 Cladding: plastic sheath to protect fibers
 Advantages
 Light waves: high frequency means high bandwidth
 Less susceptible to interference and tampering
 Lighter than copper cable
 Disadvantages
 Difficult to use, especially for multipoint connections

Copyright 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 14-40

Electromagnetic Waves
 Microwaves
 Frequencies below light but above 1 GHz
 Unguided medium
 Tightly focused for point-to-point use
 Highly susceptible to interference
 Applications
 Large-scale Internet backbone channels
 Direct satellite-to-home TV
 IEEE 802.11 Wi-Fi
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Wireless Networking
 Wi-Fi (wireless Ethernet)
 Short-range, local area networking
 WiMAX, cellular telephone technology
 Competing versions of longer range
wireless networking
 Bluetooth
 Personal level networking

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Wi-Fi
 Access point
 Hub for wireless devices
 Router between wireless and wired
devices
 Forwards packet to destination station
 CSMA-CA
 Collision avoidance, not collision detection!

Copyright 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 14-43

Wi-Fi Network Configuration

Copyright 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 14-44

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